Sleepless Nights
by Lady S
Summary: What's the cure for Insomnia? Just a little ficlet between Rory and Luke


Sleepless Nights Lady S  
  
Yale Dorms - 1:46 am  
  
Tossing for the millionth time in one night Rory gave up on ever falling asleep and sat up, tossing the covers aside and reaching for her robe. With a small scowl on her face she opened the door and tiptoed out of the room, through the main room, and out into the hallway. Pulling her robe tightly around her she headed down to the cafeteria, ignoring everyone else around her. This was the fifth night in a row that she hadn't been able to get to sleep and Rory knew she needed to make a change or it was going to effect her grades.  
  
Grabbing a cup from the stack near the wall she headed over to the hot drinks and stopped still, staring at the many choices before her. With a small whine she reached into her robe pocket, thankful that she'd instinctively grabbed her cell phone on the way out, and opened it. Dialing a number she knew by heart Rory put the phone to her ear and waited, listening to the rings until someone finally picked up.  
  
"I can't sleep," she whined.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Stars Hollow - 1:49 am  
  
Contentedly sleeping in bed the ring of the phone startled the dreamer awake. Grumbling about the phone company and calling evil down on the person on the other line as he stumbled out of bed and across the room he picked up the phone with a gruff "Whoever this is you are hereby permanently banned from my diner."  
  
"I can't sleep."  
  
Silent for a moment the sleep began to clear from Luke's mind. "Rory?"  
  
"Yeah, it's me."  
  
"What's wrong?"  
  
"It's two in the morning, I can't sleep, I haven't slept good in five days and if I don't get some sleep soon my grades are gonna suffer. If they go down I might lose my shot at making it in this world and then I'll end up a college dropout who goes through the day knowing they could have been somebody and cursing the ones who took her place as the successful people in the world."  
  
Shaking his head Luke tried to wipe the tiredness from his face with his free hand. "Where are you?"  
  
"In the dorm cafeteria."  
  
"All right. Tell me what your choices are."  
  
Listening as she rattled off the names from the boxes in front of her Luke couldn't stop his mind from thinking back to the first time they'd had this conversation so many years ago.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Luke's Diner - 10 years and 38 minutes ago  
  
Standing behind the counter going over his checklist one last time he was about to head upstairs to get some sleep when he heard the small tapping on the door to the diner. Frowning he walked over to the door, ready to tell whoever that was there to go away. Opening the door he stopped short at the sight of the little girl standing on the step.  
  
"Rory?"  
  
"I can't sleep."  
  
Glancing out into the street, seeing it deserted, Luke pulled her into the diner. "Where's your mom?"  
  
"Sleeping."  
  
"So you walked to the diner yourself?" he asked, lifting her up to sit on one of the stools at his counter. Rory nodded. "Your mom is going to flip when she sees that you're not in your bed."  
  
"I'll go back home," she whispered softly, a small and dejected look on her face.  
  
"Hold on a minute," Luke told her, putting his hand on her shoulder. "Can't sleep, huh? Stay right there, I know just the cure."  
  
Disappearing into the kitchen he came back out a few minutes later with a steaming mug and a small plate. Setting them both down on the counter he pushed the place toward Rory but held the cup back for a moment to add some milk and sugar. Watching her pick up the small danish he'd warmed for her Luke stirred everything together and pushed the mug toward her as well.  
  
"Be careful it's still kinda hot."  
  
Nodding she held the mug carefully in her hands and sipped. "That's good," she smiled at him. "What is it?"  
  
"Something other than coffee," he smiled at her, glad that she liked his personal blend. "So you went to school today?"  
  
"Mhmm," Rory nodded, her mouth full. Swallowing she said "I got three more books from the library since I returned the three I'd already read. I can't believe they'll only let you take out three books at a time." Shaking her head she reached for the mug, unable to stop the yawn from escaping as she did so.  
  
Silence fell for a few moments as she sipped her drink, the danish already long gone from the plate. Leaning against the back counter Luke smiled to himself when her eyes became filled with sleep, the bright shine of energy slowly slipping away. When Rory had finished the drink he too the mug and plate into the kitchen, washing them quickly before putting them in the rack to dry. Satisfied that the kitchen was in order Luke stopped in the doorway between the two rooms, a smile tugging at his mouth.  
  
Still sitting at the counter Rory had laid her head on the countertop, her arm as a pillow, and fallen asleep. Eyes closed, mouth slightly parted, she was a picture perfect little sleeping angel and Luke knew the sight of it would forever be burned into his heart. Gently picking her up he draped her over his shoulder, supporting her with his arm. Her arms automatically moving around his neck she settled into him, never waking as she opened the front door and moved outside.  
  
Down the sidewalk, through the town, he headed towards the house that Lorelei had worked so hard to save up the money on the down payment for. In the six years that he'd had the diner she'd been a regular patron, every morning, more than once if she could afford it, stopping in for a cup of coffee.  
  
He had to smile.  
  
Somehow she had managed to wheedle herself onto his good side, something that most people in this town hadn't been able to do in his entire life. Maybe it was because she was so beautiful, as Miss Patty had told him on more than one occasion, or maybe it was because she was the very anti of everything he was, as Babette had told him once. Then again maybe it was simply because she knew how to annoy Taylor, something he enjoyed seeing more than anything else in the world.  
  
But Luke knew what it was, the reason he allowed her to get so close to him despite all the annoying things she did. He'd never tell a soul, not till hell froze over, but he knew what the reason was.  
  
Rory.  
  
That was the reason he allowed her into his life, onto the extremely limited list of people he called friends. Twenty-two years old with an eight-year-old daughter and still going strong. She'd managed to keep her head above water during the tough times and keep smiling no matter what came along.  
  
She had an inner strength and Luke was reminded of it every time he saw Rory.  
  
Seeing the house as he walked towards it Luke frowned when he saw that the lights were on in every single room. As he put a foot on the driveway he watched as the front door flew open, a frantic Lorelei coming through at top speed. "Rory!" she cried.  
  
"She's okay," Luke assured her. "Rory stopped by the diner for a midnight snack."  
  
"Oh thank God you were there," she said, tears beginning to form in her eyes when she saw that Rory was in fact okay. "Luke."  
  
"Why don't I put her in her bed?" he interrupted.  
  
Nodding Lorelei led the way into the house and showed him to Rory's room. When the sleeping girl was settled back into her bed they walked out, shutting the door behind them but leaving it open by a crack. Turning to face Luke Lorelei threw her arms around him, hugging the silent man fiercely. "Thank you Luke, thank you so much!"  
  
"Yeah, well." he stumbled. "Listen I better be going."  
  
Nodding Lorelei thanked him again as she walked him back out to the front door. Saying goodnight he hurried down the stairs and past her jeep to the sidewalk again. Stopping just before it was out of sight Luke turned back to glance at the house and saw the lights shutting off one by one. Nodding he smiled slightly to himself and hurried back to the diner.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Stars Hollow - Present Day - 1:50 am  
  
". or something called English Breakfast."  
  
Closing his eyes for a moment Luke felt a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. "I would go with the Chamomile. There's no caffeine and it's a soothing blend."  
  
"Okay."  
  
In the background he could hear her tearing open the paper packet and the sound of the water filling a cup. When he heard the sound of a chair being scraped over the floor he knew she had sat down. "So do you have classes today?"  
  
Sitting at the table in the corner Rory smiled. "Yeah, one this morning and then two this afternoon. Then I'll probably head over to the library so I can."  
  
Sitting back in his chair Luke stretched his long frame out, crossing his arms over his chest and listened as Rory told him about her day.  
  
The End 


End file.
